Portals & Champions Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Watch the Tutorial
• In This Box
• Story & How to Win
  • Story
  • How to Win
• Card Types
• Deity Cards
• Divine Intervention Cards
• Portal Cards
  • Step 1: Opening a Portal
  • Step 2: Resolving a Portal
  • Step 3: Closing a Portal
• Ally Cards
  • Face-Up in the Ally Zone
  • Face-Down in the Rearguard Zone
• Champion Cards
• Equipment Cards
• Action Cards
• Areas
• Setting Up a Game
  • Deck Construction
  • Start of the Game
  • First Turn
  • Counting Faith & Stamina
• Game Flow
  • The 3 Phases of Each Turn
  • Combat Declaration
  • Combat Sequence
  • Damage Calculation
  • Combat Example
• 3 Golden Rules
  • Golden Rule #1: Battlefield Specificity
  • Golden Rule #2: Resolution Sequence
  • Golden Rule #3: The Golden Rule
• Multiplayer Rules
  • How to Win & Start of the Game
  • First Turn
  • What About Battlefields?
  • Player Elimination
• Solo Challenges
• Tournaments
• Keywords

Watch the Tutorial

To best grasp the basics and get started, watch the tutorial video on the website. Start your journey by watching the video and learn the essentials! Afterward, be sure to read the rules for a deeper understanding.

In This Box

This box contains 1 rulebook, 2 foldable, double-sided paper playmats, 8 tokens, and 294 cards split between 2 regions. Each region includes a starter deck, shrink-wrapped separately along with a background story, decklist, keyword reference card and turn order card.

• 4 Deity cards
• 8 Divine Intervention cards
• 30 Portal cards
• 8 tokens (for tracking statuses)
• 2 foldable, double-sided paper playmats
• 2 keyword cards
• 2 turn order cards
• 2 story cards
• 2 decklist cards
• 12 Champion cards
• 232 Ally, Equipment and Action cards

Story & How to Win

Story

The realm of Rolaria has been plunged into chaos by a war among Deities. The divine forces at play have created rifts between dimensions & various locations within the realm. As a player, you will assume the role of a Deity, commanding an army of Allies, strategically positioning them to secure access to these Portals while simultaneously directing your Champions in the heat of battle. Prepare to unleash your divine power and lead your armies to glory in this epic fantasy-themed card game.

How to Win

The ultimate goal is to lower your opponent's Faith to 0, rendering their Deity utterly powerless. This can be done by successfully opening Portals and damaging opposing Champions.

Opening Portals and attacking Champions weakens the opponent's position and directly reduces their Faith. By effectively executing these actions, you can secure victory. When a player has to draw from an empty deck you can also be declared the winner.

Card Types

Before delving into the various types of cards in this game, let us first provide an overview of the common elements found on each card.

• Name - the name of the card.
• Type - this may include extra details such as race or the empowerment indicator "E" (only for Empowered Champions) or the Portal cost (only for Portals). Some effects require declaring a card type: always declare the entire text from this box (for example, 'Beast Ally').
• Region - each card is distinguished by a unique icon, color & border representing its region. Players are restricted to a single region when building their deck.
• Rarity - the dots indicate the maximum allowed copies of a card in your deck: 1 dot for 'Mythic' (1 copy), 2 dots for 'Epic' (2 copies) and 3 dots for 'Basic' (3 copies).

Deity Cards

Embodying divine power, players become Deities in the epic struggle for control. Choose your Deity wisely as it will have a significant impact on your overall strategy and success within the game.

Each player controls 1 Deity. This card is placed in the Deity Zone and determines the amount of Faith you start with. There is no maximum limit to the amount of Faith a player can have during the game.

Each Deity also provides you with an additional effect that can be leveraged during gameplay and the condition that must be met to empower your Champions. The empowerment condition may only be triggered once per turn and only in your own Action Phase. After activation, place a black token on your Deity.

• Faith - Amount of Faith you start with. When reduced to 0, you lose.
• Effect - An unique additional effect.
• Empower condition - Condition for empowering your Champion.

Divine Intervention Cards

Amidst the chaos, Deities can call upon their divine powers. With a cost of 1 Faith, unleash these powerful cards at crucial moments, but beware, once played, their potent influence is forever spent.

Place the 2 "Divine Intervention" cards face down under your Deity. These cards can be used at any time during the game but cost 1 Faith to play. After playing a Divine Intervention card, it is flipped over and cannot be used again for the remainder of the game. "Divine Interventions" have the same effect for all Deities.

Divine Intervention cards are flipped after usage.

Portal Cards

Portals are a crucial part of the game, granting access to a range of powerful effects.

Each player chooses 9 unique Portals, dividing them into 3 equal piles, arranging them in their preferred order. These are placed in the Portal Zones between 2 opposing Champions.

During the game, players may look at the top card of their own piles.

• Cost - The Life Force needed to open this Portal (indicated on the back of the card).
• Faith - The amount of Faith the opponent loses after this Portal has been opened.
• Switch - Allows you to instantly switch the Champion at that Portal with another friendly Champion. This is not available on all Portals.
• Effect - An unique additional effect.
• Flavour text

Portal cards are flipped to open.

Step 1: Opening a Portal

Opening a Portal costs a certain amount of Life Force indicated on the back of the card. Only Life Force from Allies in the Ally Zone (Deploy and Charge Zone) under that Portal can be used. When matching or exceeding the cost, you can exhaust* all needed Allies to open the Portal. When spending more Life Force than necessary, the leftover points are lost.

Exhausted Allies are sent to the discard pile at the end of your turn. Non-used Allies remain unaffected.

*See "Keywords" on the last page.

Step 2: Resolving a Portal

After opening a Portal, immediately decrease the opponent's Faith by the amount stated in the top right corner. Then, if there is a switch* icon on your Portal card, you may switch your Champion at that Portal with another friendly Champion. Then apply the effect of the Portal. Some Portal effects resolve instantly, while others can be used each turn.

*See "Keywords" on the last page.

Step 3: Closing a Portal

Opened Portals stay in place until closed. Opening a new Portal closes and replaces the old one. Closed Portals are returned to the bottom of its respective pile, ready to be used again in the future. Portals can never be closed during combat. However they can be closed between declaration and start of the combat.

A Portal cannot be closed during combat but can be closed immediately after the combat declaration. What does that mean?

Upon declaring combat, players may react with effect or cards that can close the Portal (E.g. Action card with the reaction keyword, a Divine Intervention card, or a specific Rearguard effect). If no such card is played or effect activated, combat proceeds. Once combat begins, no effects or cards (including Divine Interventions) can close a Portal until damage is calculated and possibly subtracted from the player's Faith.

Do I still spend Stamina if a Portal is closed between combat declaration and combat, or if my Champion's effect is negated by a card's effect?

No, if you intend to spend Stamina for your Champion to attack or use its effect, but someone reacts with an effect or card (such as an Action card with the reaction keyword, a Divine Intervention card, or a specific Rearguard effect) that either closes the Portal, negates your Champion's effect, or renders you unable to proceed with combat or activate your Champion's effect, you do not spend any Stamina.

There is a specific order in which Champion effects trigger or combat initiates. First, there's the 'declaration of combat' or 'declaration of effect usage.' During this step, players can still react. If no reaction card is played or effect activated, you must spend the Stamina (if you haven't already done so earlier that turn), after which combat or effect usage proceeds.

Therefore, if someone negates your Champion's effect or closes a Portal during combat declaration, no Stamina has been spent yet.

*See "Keywords" on the last page.

Ally Cards

Deployed in Ally Zones, they unleash their Regular effects & contribute Life Force for opening Portals. Alternatively, in the Rearguard, they offer Rearguard effects or modifiers in battle.

Each player's deck must contain exactly 25 Ally cards. Allies can be used in 2 ways: face-up in the Ally Zone or face-down in the Rearguard Zone.

Face-Up in the Ally Zone

In the Ally Zone, only the regular effect box of Allies is relevant, and their Rearguard effect box is not considered.

The Ally Zone consists of 2 subzones: the Deploy and Charge Zone. Allies must be played in the Deploy Zone, known as deploying*, with a limit of 2 Allies per Deploy Zone per turn. At the start of your turn, Allies in the Deploy Zone move to the Charge Zone, known as charging*, and can activate "Charge" effects if they have any.

Note that Allies from both the Deploy and Charge Zone can be used to open a Portal. Keep in mind that when an Ally is exhausted immediately after it has been deployed (for example by the effect of a card), it still counts towards the limit of 2 per zone. Allies cannot be replaced by other Allies.

• Life Force - Contributes to opening Portals.
• Regular Effect box - Only relevant in the Ally Zone. When the Ally has no effect, it is considered effectless and this box contains flavour text (italic) instead.

Face-Down in the Rearguard Zone

Alternatively, Allies can be played face-down in the Rearguard Zone where only the Rearguard effect box is relevant, and their Regular effect box is not considered. In this zone, Allies cannot contribute to opening a Portal and are not considered Allies anymore, but Rearguards.

There are 2 types of Rearguard effects. Firstly, there are standalone effects that provide unique abilities. Secondly, there are modifiers that can adjust the stats of your Champions during combat.

Both types can be activated during your or your opponent's turn. However, modifiers can only be used during combat. Once an Ally in the Rearguard has been used, it is instantly moved to the discard pile.

You cannot activate a Rearguard effect in your own Preparation Phase.

• Rearguard Effect box - Only relevant in the Rearguard.

*See "Keywords" on the last page.

Champion Cards

Unleash the power of your Champions and lead them into battle, for it is through their might that you can achieve the ultimate goal of reducing your opponent's Faith to 0.

• Stamina - Must be spent to be able to use this Champion.
• Attack - The attack points.
• Defense - The defense points.
• Effect box - An unique effect. Filled with flavour text when the Champion has no effect.

Champions are flipped to empower.

Each Champion has a certain Stamina which must be spent to be able to use that Champion. It is important to note that each Champion can only be used once per turn. When utilizing a Champion, you have the option to, once per turn, attack with them and/or activate their effect, if they have one.

However, the use of a Champion's effect and its attack does not have to be consecutive. For example, you may choose to use a Champion's effect, play another card, and then launch an attack with it.

A Champion can only attack if its corresponding Portal is open. If the Portal is closed, the Champion cannot attack until a new Portal is opened.

When attacking an enemy Champion, the difference between your attack and their defense is dealt as damage to your opponent's Faith. If your attack is lower than your opponent's defense, then you will take damage instead. For more information about combat, see the chapter about Combat.

Champions begin the game without empowerment, but can be empowered during gameplay, which can enhance their strength and effectiveness on the battlefield. How you can empower Champions depends on the Deity you've chosen.

Equipment Cards

Unleash the potential of Equipment cards, making Champions stronger or granting them extraordinary abilities.

• Effect - Special effect or boost.

Each Champion is limited to only 1 piece of Equipment. The Equipment must be placed in the designated Equipment slot beneath the Champion card and only that Champion can receive the benefits of that Equipment.

Equipment cannot be swapped between Champions. However, players can replace existing Equipment by playing a new Equipment card, and the old Equipment card will be discarded.

This adds a strategic element to the game, as players must carefully consider which Equipment will best benefit their Champion and decide when to replace existing Equipment with new ones.

Important to know: Equipment and Action cards can also be played facedown in the Rearguard.

The Rearguard Zone serves a dual purpose. Firstly, you can play Allies face-down to use their Rearguard effects or modifiers. Keep in mind that once a Rearguard effect is activated, that card is immediately sent to the Discard Pile. Secondly, other cards may also be played face-down in this zone, serving as an archive for unused cards, since unused Rearguards can be returned to your hand at the start of your turn.

Action Cards

Unleash the power of Action cards and shape the tides of battle with their temporary yet impactful effects.

• Effect - An unique additional effect.

Action cards grant temporary effects and are moved to the discard pile after resolving them. They can only be played during a player's turn.

Exception: Actions with the Reaction* keyword can be played during an opponent's turn from your hand. This provides an opportunity for players to react to their opponent's actions, seizing advantageous moments to shift the game in their favor. You cannot activate a Reaction in your own Preparation Phase.

Can I activate an Action (with or without the reaction keyword) or an Equipment from my Rearguard?

No, you cannot. Only Allies can be activated from a Rearguard. Allies with a Rearguard modifier effect can only be used during combat. If you (accidentally) reveal or use a wrong card or effect in your Rearguard, return the card to its original position.

Some Allies also have specific timing for their Rearguard effects (for example "after taking damage," "when an Ally would be exhausted," etc.). If you attempt to activate such an effect without meeting the correct conditions, also return the card to its original position.

*See "Keywords" on the last page.

Areas

Before the game starts, both players lay their playmats head-to-head, aligning them to create 3 complete battlefields. Effects played within a particular battlefield only affect the cards in that specific battlefield.

Each player has their own playmat, consisting of 3 battlefield-halves (see the battlefield-half diagram; the source's figure reference is garbled in the printed text). Each half contains a Champion, an Ally Zone, and a Rearguard Zone.

1. Deck Zone - Your deck must consist of exactly 40 cards of the same region, with exactly 25 Allies. The remaining 15 cards can be split between Action and Equipment however you choose. The amount of copies of each card that you can include in your deck depends on their rarity: Basic (3), Epic (2) and Mythic (1). This is indicated at the bottom of each card. The total of remaining cards in your deck is considered public information and must be revealed if asked.
2. Discard pile - All used, destroyed or exhausted cards go face-up to the Discard Pile. Players can look in all Discard Piles at any time during the game.
3. Deity Zone - Place your Deity here. Your Deity must belong to the same region as your deck and determines the amount of Faith you start with. Deities also provide the condition that must be met to empower your Champions.
4. Divine Interventions - Place your Divine Interventions here facedown. These cards can be used at any time during the game but cost 1 Faith to play.
5. Portal Zones - Place 3 equal face down piles of Portal cards here. When opening a Portal, flip the top card next to it in the Active Portal Zone. You can look at the top card of your own Portals piles at any time during the game. Your Portals must belong to the same region as your deck.
6. Ally Zones - Consists of 2 subzones: the Deploy and Charge Zone. Allies must be played in the Deploy Zone, known as deploying. At the start of your turn, Allies in the Deploy Zone move to the Charge Zone, known as charging.
7. Rearguard Zones - Serve a dual purpose: you can play Allies face-down to utilize their Rearguard effect or modifiers. Equipment and Action cards can also be placed face-down in this zone, acting as an archive for your unused cards. There can only be 1 card per Rearguard. You can look at your own Rearguards at any time during the game. When a card is in this zone it is referred to as "Rearguard".

Setting Up a Game

Deck Construction

Players are restricted to a single region while constructing their deck!

Note that each set of Portals & Champions comes with a separately shrinkwrapped starter deck and list of those cards.

Start by choosing 3 unique Champions and 1 Deity to center your strategy around. Next, select 9 unique Portal cards. Then it's time to construct your deck. Your deck must consist of exactly 40 cards, with exactly 25 Allies. Choose your Allies with care, as they play a critical role in opening Portals and supporting your Champions in battle.

The amount of copies of each card that you can include in your deck depends on their rarity: Basic (3), Epic (2) and Mythic (1). This is indicated at the bottom of each card*. Some cards have 'This card's name is treated as ...' in their effect box. This means a player can only choose either that card or the card it is treated as when constructing their deck or choosing their Champions and/or Portals.

*See "Card Types".

Start of the Game

Both players simultaneously place their Champions in their respective zones, one by one, starting from the same side. Next, place your Deity in the Deity Zone with 2 interventions underneath. Place the Portal piles in the zones between the opposing Champions. Finally, shuffle your deck.

Both players draw cards until they have 5 in their hand and begin with 0 Stamina. If you are dissatisfied with your initial hand, you may return any number of cards from your hand to the bottom of your deck without revealing them. You then draw the same number of new cards as you put at the bottom of your deck, then shuffle your deck. You can only do this once.

First Turn

The game begins with the player who has most recently visited a game store or by a coin toss to determine the first player. The starting player cannot initiate an attack during their first turn but is allowed to open Portals.

Counting Faith & Stamina

We recommend utilizing our mobile-friendly web counter for tracking Stamina and Faith. (portals-and-champions.com/counter)

Game Flow

The 3 Phases of Each Turn

1. Preparation Phase (in this order): a. Move all your Allies from their Deploy Zones up to their Charge Zones in the same Ally Zone & trigger Charge effects. b. Take non-used Rearguard card(s) from your Rearguard Zone to your hand, if desired. c. Gain 2 Stamina. There is no maximum Stamina. d. You may remove statuses* for a cost of 2 Stamina each.
2. Action Phase: a. You can use cards from your hand and battlefields in any order, open Portals, and use each Champion once, if able.
3. Clean-up Phase (in this order): a. Players place exhausted* Allies in their Discard piles. b. Draw cards from your deck until you have 5 cards in your hand. This action is mandatory. If a player cannot draw because they have zero cards remaining in their deck, they immediately lose. c. End your turn.

*See "Keywords" on the last page.

Combat Declaration

Champions can only attack the opposing Champion, and only if your corresponding Portal is open. If the Portal is closed, the Champion is unable to attack until a new Portal is opened.

First the attacking player declares an attack. Then other players have the option to react with an effect or card (for example an Action card with the reaction keyword, a Divine Intervention, a specific Rearguard effect, ...). If no player reacts or after resolving the effect, combat proceeds if able.

Combat Sequence

The combat sequence follows a specific order. Champions are not destroyed after combat. Each player may only use 1 modifier from their Rearguard per battle. However, other Rearguard effects (for example adjacent Rearguards with the keyword global*) may still be activated as normal. Used Rearguards are sent to the discard pile after combat.

1. The attacker must spend the Stamina cost of the Champion (if they haven't already done so earlier that turn).
2. The defender has the option to use the Defense modifier from an Ally in their Rearguard to augment their Champion's Defense.
3. The attacker has the option to use the Attack modifier from an Ally in their Rearguard to augment their Champion's Attack.
4. Finally, the damage calculation is performed based on the modified Attack and Defense values.

*See "Keywords" on the last page.

Damage Calculation

• Attack > Defense: If the (modified) Attack is higher than the (modified) Defense, the difference is subtracted from the defender's Faith.
• Attack < Defense: If the defending Champion has more (modified) Defense than the (modified) Attack of the attacking Champion, the difference is subtracted from the attacker's Faith.
• Attack = Defense: When there is a tie, nothing happens, but it is still considered combat.

Combat Example

John chooses "Cjing, Yellow Dragon", a Champion with 3 Attack, to initiate the attack. Marc, the defender, has their Champion "Arya", a Champion with 1 Defense, ready to defend, which is equipped with "Ring of Swiftness" which gives a boost +1 Defense.

John declares the attack, and Marc decides to use a defense modifier from an Ally in their Rearguard Zone. Marc plays an Ally with a defense modifier of +2, bolstering their Champion's defenses up to 4.

Not to be outdone, John responds by activating an attack modifier from an Ally in his Rearguard Zone, with an attack modifier of +2, empowering their Champion's Attack to 5.

With the modifiers in place, the damage calculation commences. John's Champion has an original attack value of 3 (base attack) + 2 (attack modifier) = 5. Marc's Champion has a defense value of 1 (base defense) + 1 (Equipment) + 2 (defense modifier) = 4.

The difference between the attack and defense values is 5 - 4 = 1. This means Marc's Faith is reduced by 1, reflecting the successful attack from John's Champion.

3 Golden Rules

Golden Rule #1: Battlefield Specificity

Effects played within a particular battlefield only affect the cards in that specific battlefield (your half and that of the enemy equals 1 battlefield).

Golden Rule #2: Resolution Sequence

When activating a card with the keyword "Reaction" or utilizing the Rearguard effect from an Ally in response to an event, it is important to follow a specific resolution order.

Begin by resolving the last played card or activated effect first, and then continue resolving the rest of the cards sequentially. This sequential resolution applies to each event, allowing players to react and respond strategically to various situations during gameplay.

By adhering to this order, the gameplay flows smoothly, ensuring that each card's effect is applied in the appropriate sequence.

Please note: a card that is targeted by another card cannot activate its effect in response.

Golden Rule #3: The Golden Rule

If the text of a card directly contradicts the text of the rules, the text of the card takes precedence.

If an Ally is exhausted immediately after being deployed, does its Deploy effect trigger?

Consider "Golden Rule #2: Resolution Sequence," which states, "Begin by resolving the last played card or activated effect first, and then continue resolving the rest of the cards sequentially." Since the Ally is played first, followed by an effect that exhausts it, the effect occurs last, resulting in the Ally being exhausted before it can activate its deploy effect.

If a card with a Cost is exhausted or destroyed immediately after being deployed, must the cost still be met?

Yes, the cost of a card is a prerequisite that must be fulfilled before deploying or playing that card, and it must still be met even if the card is exhausted or destroyed immediately after being deployed or played.

Multiplayer Rules

When playing with 3 or more players, there are additional rules and changes to existing rules.

How to Win & Start of the Game

You win if you're the last remaining player. Players are eliminated if they have 0 Faith or if they must draw a card from an empty deck.

All players simultaneously place their Champions in their respective zones, one by one, starting with their middle Champion, followed by the left Champion, and then the right Champion. Then proceed as usual.

First Turn

The player who wins the coin toss or visited their gamestore last decides whether they start first or last. Then proceed in a clockwise order. In the first round only the last player can attack. All players may open Portals, use their Champions' effects, or empower them on their first turn.

What About Battlefields?

In multiplayer, the battlefields are organized as follows:

a. The left battlefield-half is connected to the right battlefield-half of the left opponent.

b. The right battlefield-half is connected to the left battlefield-half of the right opponent.

c. The center battlefield is connected to the center battlefield of each opponent, meaning that effects played there can impact all opponents. If an effect targets a specific opponent, you may choose which opponent it affects.

When opening a Portal in the center, you choose the opponent that takes the damage listed on that Portal. Opening a Portal allows the possibility to attack each center Champion, with the attacking player choosing which enemy center Champion to attack. When activating an effect in the center battlefield, you may also choose which opponent it targets.

Player Elimination

If a player is eliminated at any point during the game, the left and right battlefield-halves, along with the center battlefield, are reassigned to the remaining players following the multiplayer rules.

For example, consider the following scenario: you decide to open a Portal on your left battlefield-half, inflicting damage significant enough to eliminate the player located in that section. In the very same turn, utilizing the opened Portal, you have the opportunity to launch an attack on the next active player on your left.

Solo Challenges

In Portals & Champions, players have the option to engage in Solo Challenges, strategic puzzles designed to test your mastery of the game. In these challenges, specific cards are pre-set on the field, and you are given a defined hand of cards. Your goal? Achieve victory in a single turn.

Each scenario presents a unique combination of cards and board states, forcing you to think critically about your options. Will you find the perfect sequence of actions to turn the tide in your favor?

Solo challenges can be found on the website (portals-and-champions.com/solo-challenges).

Tournaments

Ready to test your skills and rise to the top? Join a Portals & Champions tournament at your local game store and win exclusive full-art promo's and new skins for your web friendly counter! Whether you're a seasoned strategist or new to the battlefield, there's a challenge waiting for you. Ask your local store for details and get ready to compete for glory. For more information, visit the website (portals-and-champions.com/stores).

Keywords

Below is a list of keywords. Certain keywords impose statuses on cards. It is recommended to place tokens on cards with statuses, indicating that they have 1 or more statuses. Statuses can be removed during the Preparation Phase in your turn by spending 2 Stamina per status.

• Add - Search your deck for a card that matches the specification, reveal it, put it in your hand, then shuffle your deck.
• Banish - Exhaust the specified Ally. In the Clean-up phase it is removed from the game instead of sent to the Discard Pile.
• Burned status - Before using a Champion with the burned status, you must spend 1 Faith.
• Charge - Activate this effect immediately (unless stated otherwise) after the Ally is charged (see 'Ally Cards').
• Cost - Requirement that must be fulfilled before playing the card.
• Deploy - Activate this effect immediately after the Ally is deployed (see 'Ally Cards').
• Depower - Flip this Champion to their regular state.
• Destroy - Negate the effect of the destroyed card & sent it to the Discard pile. Champions & Portals cannot be destroyed.
• Discard - Put this card in your Discard pile.
• Empower - Flip this Champion to their empowered state.
• Evoke - Activate this effect at a time of your choosing during your turn. Close the Portal after activating this effect.
• Exhaust - Flip this Ally face-down to indicate that it is exhausted & cannot be used anymore. In the Clean-up phase, sent it to the Discard pile.

Keep in mind that when searching for a specific card in your deck or discard pile, you must always reveal it, unless stated otherwise.